FORT DODGE, Iowa — Two correctional officers at the Fort Dodge Correctional Facility had to be hospitalized following an attack by inmates on Wednesday, March 21.

According to a release from the Iowa Department of Corrections, the incident began when a single inmate attacked a guard. When a second officer tried to pull the attacker off, a second inmate joined the fray, and began kicking the officers, who had fallen to the ground attempting to restrain the first attacker.

Additional correctional staff rushed to the scene of the altercation and quickly restrained the attackers, the report stated.

Both officers were transported to a nearby hospital where they were treated and released for scratches and bruising.

In the current spending bill pending in the Iowa Legislature, the Iowa Department of Corrections will lose $3.4 million. Senator Chaz Allen, D-Newton, warned that Iowa prisons might grow more crowded while staffing would be reduced.